#SDWildlife

[travelella]

Plains Bison in Custer, South Dakota, USA

Stephanie LeBlanc

The Plains bison is one of two subspecies/ecotypes of the American bison, the other being the wood bison.

Status: Near Threatened

Population: 45,000

Scientific Name: Bison bison bison

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Subphylum: Vertebrata

Class: Mammalia

Order: Artiodactyla

Family: Bovidae

Subfmaily: Bovinae

Tribe: Bovini

Genus: Bison

Weight: 701 to 2,000 pounds

Length: 7-12 ft.

Habitat: Grassland

Range: Bison once roamed from Florida to Washington, Canada, and Mexico - The entire U.S.

Predators: Wolves are the primary predator of bison across the continent. Local knowledge also indicates that bears play a role in predation.

Diet: Bison are considered generalist foragers, meaning they eat a wide array of herbaceous grasses and sedges commonly found in mixed-grassed prairies. These types of plants include species such as Blue gramma, sand dropseed, and little bluestem.

Lifespan: The average lifespan for a bison is 10–20 years, but some live to be older. Cows begin breeding at the age of two and only have one baby at a time. For males, the prime breeding age is six to 10 years.

Importance: Bison graze the grasses at different heights, providing nesting grounds for birds. They also roll around and pack down the soil in depressions in the ground known as wallows. Their wallows fill with rainwater and offer breeding pools for amphibians and sources of drinking water for wildlife across the landscape.

[everythingsouthdakota]

South Dakota Wildlife

I thought this would something neat for your South Dakota Kids to check out. The PDF brochure is pretty simple. The pictures are black/white and small, but they have nice descriptions for each of the South Dakota animals. The Mammals of South Dakota poster print I found on Etsy would make a cool gift that your kid could hang on their bedroom wall.

South Dakota Wildlife Brochure

South Dakota’s…

[travelella]

Plains Bison in Custer, South Dakota, USA

Stephanie LeBlanc

The Plains bison is one of two subspecies/ecotypes of the American bison, the other being the wood bison.

Status: Near Threatened

Population: 45,000

Scientific Name: Bison bison bison

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Subphylum: Vertebrata

Class: Mammalia

Order: Artiodactyla

Family: Bovidae

Subfmaily: Bovinae

Tribe: Bovini

Genus: Bison

Weight: 701 to 2,000 pounds

Length: 7-12 ft.

Habitat: Grassland

Range: Bison once roamed from Florida to Washington, Canada, and Mexico - The entire U.S.

Predators: Wolves are the primary predator of bison across the continent. Local knowledge also indicates that bears play a role in predation.

Diet: Bison are considered generalist foragers, meaning they eat a wide array of herbaceous grasses and sedges commonly found in mixed-grassed prairies. These types of plants include species such as Blue gramma, sand dropseed, and little bluestem.

Lifespan: The average lifespan for a bison is 10–20 years, but some live to be older. Cows begin breeding at the age of two and only have one baby at a time. For males, the prime breeding age is six to 10 years.

Importance: Bison graze the grasses at different heights, providing nesting grounds for birds. They also roll around and pack down the soil in depressions in the ground known as wallows. Their wallows fill with rainwater and offer breeding pools for amphibians and sources of drinking water for wildlife across the landscape.

[travelella]

Badlands National Park, South Dakota, USA

Michael

[travelella]

Badlands National Park, South Dakota, USA

Michael

[travelella]

Mexican Pronghorn in Custer, South Dakota, USA

Stephanie LeBlanc

The Mexican pronghorn is a pronghorn native to Mexico. It was found in the United States, but is considered extirpated there.

Conservation Status: Least Concern

Species: A. americana

Habitat: Open prairie and desert

Speed: 60 mph

Diet: non-woody flowering plants first, if available. Shrubs, grasses, cactus, and domestic crops are also on the menu, depending on the time of year. Shrubs are important in wintertime, and pronghorn use their front feet to dig for food buried in the snow.

[travelella]

Plains Bison in Custer, South Dakota, USA

Stephanie LeBlanc

The Plains bison is one of two subspecies/ecotypes of the American bison, the other being the wood bison.

Status: Near Threatened

Population: 45,000

Scientific Name: Bison bison bison

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Subphylum: Vertebrata

Class: Mammalia

Order: Artiodactyla

Family: Bovidae

Subfmaily: Bovinae

Tribe: Bovini

Genus: Bison

Weight: 701 to 2,000 pounds

Length: 7-12 ft.

Habitat: Grassland

Range: Bison once roamed from Florida to Washington, Canada, and Mexico - The entire U.S.

Predators: Wolves are the primary predator of bison across the continent. Local knowledge also indicates that bears play a role in predation.

Diet: Bison are considered generalist foragers, meaning they eat a wide array of herbaceous grasses and sedges commonly found in mixed-grassed prairies. These types of plants include species such as Blue gramma, sand dropseed, and little bluestem.

Lifespan: The average lifespan for a bison is 10–20 years, but some live to be older. Cows begin breeding at the age of two and only have one baby at a time. For males, the prime breeding age is six to 10 years.

Importance: Bison graze the grasses at different heights, providing nesting grounds for birds. They also roll around and pack down the soil in depressions in the ground known as wallows. Their wallows fill with rainwater and offer breeding pools for amphibians and sources of drinking water for wildlife across the landscape.

[travelella]

Badlands National Park, South Dakota, USA

Alex Moliski

[travelella]

Baja Californian Pronghorn in Custer, South Dakota, USA

Stephanie LeBlanc

Conservation Status: Critically endangered

Population: The wild population is estimated at 200.

Scientific name: Antilocapra americana peninsularis

Class: Mammalia

Family: Antilocapridae

Habitat: Open prairie and desert habitats in western North America.

Diet: Shrubs, forbs, broad-leaf weeds, cacti, sagebrush, other leaves, and herbs.

[travelella]

Sonoran Pronghorn in Custer, South Dakota, USA

Stephanie LeBlanc

Scientific name: Antilocapra americana sonoriensis

Domain: Eukaryota

Family: Antilocapridae

Kingdom: Animalia

Subspecies: A. a. sonoriensis

Habitat: Dry plains and desert

Predators: Wolves, foxes, coyotes, bobcats, and golden eagles.

Diet: Cactus and other tough desert vegetation in addition to grasses and broad-leaved plants.